Why run 26 miles? The beer at the end, for some

About 25,000 runners from all 50 states and 18 countries converged upon Qwest Field Saturday for the finish of the inaugural Rock ‘N’ Roll Seattle marathon and half marathon.

The finish line came at mile 13.1 or 26.2, depending on whether they ran the full or half race. But for some, the desired conclusion wasn’t for another 200 yards, right behind the gates of Qwest Field, where two giant inflatable beer bottles towered more than 25 feet above the entrance to the official race beer garden.

It wasn’t hard to spot the beer garden outside Qwest Field at the conclusion of Saturday’s Rock ‘n Roll Marathon. (Byron Edelman photo)

MillerCoors donated free 12-ounce beers to every runner who was of age. By noon, one vendor estimated more than 3,000 participants had drifted through the garden and many more would be there as soon as they finished.

“It’s why you run it,” Tracy Jaquier from San Francisco said. “It tastes so good, it’s the best beer you’ve ever had in your life.”

Some runners made the case that beer helped them recover from the marathon.

How does it help you recover, I asked Greg, who didn’t give his last name, but said he is from Tacoma.

I had a hard time imagining Gatorade or Wheaties marketing beer as the future fuel of champions. But Trent Keeble from Houston – who is bald and wore a Mohawk-wig suction cupped to his head – made an excellent point that beer provides valuable carbohydrates to runners who had just spent a day burning energy.

The first words out of one runner’s mouth when she crossed the finish line: Where’s my free beer?

On a warm Saturday afternoon, the brew wasn’t just welcomed by runners, either.

“It motivates the spectators too,” said Heather Bales of Seattle, who was there to watch several of her friends run. Beer gardens are commonplace at marathons, she said.

Some runners’ only gripe with the course Saturday had nothing to do with shuttle services or water stations.

“They should have told you you need photo ID,” Lynn Hauer from Post Falls Idaho said. “How many runners run with photo ID?”

Hauer, who was without her driver’s license, was able to finagle her way into the garden using her timing chip, which had her age on it. But the Mohawk-headed Keeble wasn’t so lucky. He looked longingly into the garden from outside.

“There were a lot of people who would be here, but they’re not because they didn’t bring their ID,” Jaquier said.

The race finished just beyond the shadow of Qwest Field. Many racers would have appreciated the shade if it had reached the finish line. But they had a cool beer awaiting them instead.